Accessory for steering



.1. L. BARR 2,343,182

y ACCESSORY ma STEEMNG Jan. w, 1939.

@riginal Filed May 5, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet l Jam., w, w39. J1 L. BARRMMSE ACCESSORY 1 FOR STEERING Original Filed May 5, 1934 2 Sheets-Shee 2Patented Jan. 10, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Application May 5,1934, serial No. 724,168

Renewed October 13, 1936 19 Claims.

My invention relates to mechanisms which iacilitate the steering ofvehicles in circumstances such as parking and unparking vehicles inconfined spaces.

It is particularly adapted to facilitate steering of automotivevehicles.

It is an object of the invention to provide a pressure operated liftelement capable of elongation while at the same time permitting theelement to be moved into a position out of the way of the operatingmechanism of the car and without materially affecting the road clearancethereof.

A further object of the invention is to provide 'a mechanism of the typedescribed which tends to center itself transversely and longitudinally.

Another object of the invention is toprovide a lift lement capable ofelongation which is so constructed as to give a substantially uniformlift per unit of elongation regardless of the transverse displacement ofits ground engaging portion.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a lift element whichmay move forward or backwards, or sidewise in either direction, withoutinjury to the mechanism, in response to movement of the vehicle whilethe device is in use.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a lift element whichwill, when it is in use, compensate for any movement of the vehiclewithout injury to the device or to the vehicle, and which will, byreason of said compensating provisions, operate smoothly.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a cam devicewhich, in cooperating with the elongating portion of the lift element,will compensate for lateral displacement of the foot and lift elementwith respect to a fixed spot on the Vehicle.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a liitelement which isconstructed so that it inherently retains its characteristics of uniformlift even though the vehicle has been moved transversely during thelifting operation..

I With these and other objects in View, which may be incident to myimprovements, the invention consists in Ithe parts and combinations tobe hereinafter set forth and claimed, with the understanding that theseveral necessary elements comprising my invention may be varied inconstruction, proportions and arrangement. without departing from thespirit and scope of the appended claims.

1n order to make my invention more clearly understood, I have shown inthe, accompanying drawings means for carrying the same into practicaleffect without limiting the improvements in their useful applications tothe particular constructions, which, for the purpose of explanation,have been made the subject of illustration.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a view in side elevation partly diagrammatic, showing my liftdevice in ground engaging position attached to the front axle of theautomobile.

Fig. 2 is a detailed front elevation of my device showing in dash linestransverse displacement of the lift element and the operation of thedevice for compensating for such movement, and also in dot dash linesthe device raised into the inoperative position.

Fig. 3 is a View taken along line 3-3 of Fig. 2, looking in thedirection of the arrows.

Fig. 4 is a view taken along line 4--4 of Fig. 2, looking in thedirection of the arrows.

Fig. 5 is a detailed sectional View taken through a longitudinal axis ofthe fluid pump.

Fig. 6 is a view of a modied form of the device, such View being a viewin front elevation.

Fig. '7 is a sectional view taken along the longitudinal axis of thepiston of a modied form shown in Fig. 6.

Referring to the drawings, Fig. 1 shows a side frame I on which is himga front spring element 2 by means of a front spring shackle 3 and a rearspring shackle 4. The spring 2 is attached to the axle 5 by means ofU-bolts 6. The axle 5 has attached to its front side a support I whichcomprises a U-shaped member having a base 8, a side piece 9 and a frontI I. by means of U-bolts I2 tothe axle 5. The front I I of the support 1is in eieot a cam plate and is provided with a cam surface I3.

I have shown a cylinder head I4 provided with an aperture I5 in itsupper end. The cylinder head I4 is tightly fitted around a cylinder I6.The cylinder head is provided with slots I'l in which fit pivot membersI8 and I9. The pivot member I9 is inserted in aperture 2l formed in thebase 8 of the support 1. The pivot member i9 is provided with a reducedportionv 22 which actually ts in one of the slots il. The other slot Ilts over a reduced portion 23 of the pivot I8 which is inserted inportion II of member l and which is provided with a nut 24, a springholding section 25 and an outer annular disc 2S. The constructionpermits pivoting of the cylinder I6 and the cylinder head I4 on thepivots I8 and IS and also permits the cylinder head and cylin- Thesupport 8 is attached der to slide up and down by reason of the slotsI1.

In the cylinder is mounted a piston 27 which has a key way 28 whichengages with a key 29 carried by a cylinder head 3I. The cylinder head3l ts tightly to the cylinder I6 and is provided with stub shaftextensions 32 and 33. The base plate 8 of the support 'I is providedwith cam surface corresponding to the surface I3 of front plate II andalso surfaces corresponding to the surfaces 34 and 35 of the front plateII Mounted on stub shaft 32 is a roller 36 which is adapted to bearagainst these cam surfaces which correspond to the cam surfaces I3, 34and 35 formed on the front plate Il and which can be easily discernedfrom an inspection of Fig. 2.

Stub shaft 33 is provided with a roller 38 which is adapted to followover the cam surfaces I3, 313, and 35 formed on front plate II ofsupport 1. A holding screw 39 holds this roller 38 in position, Theroller 33 can be held in position by reason of the conguration of thebase 8.

Mounted on the piston 2 isa fluid-tight head assembly of the usual typewhich I have designated by numeral 4I in the drawings.

In communication with the aperture I5 and the cylinder head Ill is afluid-tight xture 42 communicating with a ilexible tube 43 through whichis adapted to be fed fluid, such as oil, under pressure to the cylinderto operate the piston.

rIhe piston 2l is provided with an arm 45 having a spring catch 45 onits end. There is formed a bifurcated support 46 at the end of thepiston 22'. Mounted on the piston 2l is a spring member 6.1i which isattached to the arm 44. Pivoted in the bifurcated support 86 on a pivot88 is a female member 89 of a compression element 53. The female memberis internally screw threaded and is adapted to receive a screw threadedmember 5I provided with a ball 52. The ball 52 ts into sockets in a footpiece 53 and is held in place by holding plate 54 which may be fastenedby holding screws 55 to the foot piece 53.

A lock nut 55 holds the members 5I and 49 at the proper adjusted lengthfor the compression element. Fastened to a support 57 is a Bowden wiremember 58 which passes through a hollow holding nut construction 59 on asupport 58 which is held by U-bolts 6I on the axle 5. A spring member 62is affixed to the support 50 and is adapted to bear against the uppersurface of the holding plate 5@ of the foot member 53.

Spring 52, in combination with Bowden wire 58 acts as an anti-rattle.Bowden wire 58 passes through a cover sheath 53 and the wire 58 isattached to a ring 68 which may be mounted en a steering post 65 of thecar. The ring 8d can be pulled to pull up on the Bowden wire 53 and topull the mechanism up into the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2,at which time Bowden wire 58 holds the mechanism in the up position atthe side of the axle and the spring 62 is exerting pressure on the topof the foot member. A .suitable hook (not shown) can be provided on thesteering post onv which the ring 64 can be hooked to hold the device inits up' position as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2.

Mounted on the frame l is a support 66 to which is pivoted at 58 a link6l. Link 8l is pivoted at 68 to a hand lever 69. To the hand lever 8E.is pivoted at ll a fastening member l2. Fastening member I2 is attachedto piston rod .'13, v

v`nPiston rod 'I3 passes through a packing gland l@ mounted in a head75. The head 'I5 fits within a cylinder IE which is provided with abreather hole 'Il and a ller screw 'I8 which may be removed to fill thecylinder 'I6 which acts as a reservoir for the operating uid, which maybe oil.

The head I5 is screwed as indicated at I9 into another head 8l. Thepiston 'I3 is adapted to reciprocate in aperture 82 in the head 75. Alock nut 83 holds the ensemble together, the cylinder I@ being heldbetween head 8| and fitting over the head l5, the lock nut 83 exertingtension holding the whole together in operative position.

In head 8E is a relatively large valve aperture 88. From the aperture 84is a communicating port 85 which leads tothe aperture 82 in the head l5.There is another port 8S that leads into the interior 5l of the cylinderI6. Another port 88 leads into another enlarged valve aperture 88. Inthevalve aperture 84 is a ball 9| which is held pressed against the port86 by means of spring 92. A screw head 93 holds the spring 92 inposition.

A spring 98 holds the ball 95 in the aperture 35 against the port 88. Anapertured screw plug 58 bears against one end of the spring 54 and has apassageway therein through which iluid may pass to an enlarged aperture9T formed in the head 8l.

The enlarged aperture 91 communicates with a port 38 that leads into theinterior 81 of the cylinder. A conical valve member 99 is adapted toseat in a conical seat provided in the entrance to the port 98. In thetop of the head 8l ts a screw threaded member IBI into which is alsoscrewed a nut member E82. Between the two members is packing H33. Bothmembers IUI and E52 are apertured to provide for the passage of a valvestem IM which carries an operating head 55 at its upper end.

On the head 3l is provided a support IDS upon which is pivoted'at I @lan operating lever I 08 which is operated by an operating rod |89. Theoperating rod ISS is adapted to be moved downwardly to pivot lever |98to raise the head |05 and hence the rod IM, and release the conicalvalve 99 from its seat, as will be later described.

In operation the lever 69 is operated by hand by the operator toreciprocate the piston 13. Oil is drawn on the back stroke, i. e., tothe left with the parts in the position shown in Fig. 5, through port 35raising the ball SI. The oil then passes through port 85 into theaperture 82 in front of the piston 73. When the piston 'I3 moves to theright, the oil in front of the piston is forcibly ejected through ports85 and 88, raising the ball and delivering the oil into valve apertureSl whence it passes through connection I l2 into pipe I I I, thence intothe flexible tubing s3 from whence it is delivered into the aperture inthe cylinder I 6 lying above the piston head l. This oil forces thepiston 2l downwardly.

Previously, the ring 68 had been manipulated to operate the Bowden wire58 to permit the device to occupy its down position. The vehicle, onoperation of the pump, as described, will be slightly raised to relievethe weight at least in part on at least one of the steering wheels,permitting them to be turned readily.

In turning the steering wheels, which may be partially contacting theroadway, and operating the mechanism, the device may at times tend toassume the positions indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 2, which occur atthe bottom of that gure.

The device may more completely assume these positions if during the usethereof, with the steering wheels cramped, the vehicle is permitted 'to'move even slightly by releasing the brake of the vehicle.

the floor board II5 of the car.

The foot brake will preferably be used for convenience of operation tohold the vehicle stationary while the device is being used to relieveWeight on the steering wheels, and it is readily apparent that thedrivers foot may very easily slip or otherwise ease up' on the pressuremaintained on the foot brake, thus permitting the Vehicle to move some,especially when he is using the device on hills.

It is apparent that this device, by having a universal movement, willnever be subjected to any strains and the dangerl of breaking that wouldoccur and exist if it had a possible swinging motion in only onedirection, be that direction either longitudinal or lateral. This is dueto the fact that in turning the steering wheels while they arecontacting the roadway, even though the vehicle is at rest, there isaIvirtually lateral. movement imparted to that end of the vehicle to whichthey are attached, Which, in the conventional motor vehicle, is thefront axle. This movement is due to the manner in which the steeringwheels are mounted on the conventional motor vehicle.

Because of the contact of the rollers 36 and 38y with the cam surfaceslI3, the effective lift per unit of movement of the piston 21 will beapproximately the same within certain defined limits.

In operation, the rollers pass over the cam surfaces I3, and thev upperslotted portions I1 of the cylinder head I4 `slide on the pivots i8 andI9. Y

It is to be noted that the spring 41 tends to prevent longitudinaldisplacement of the cornpression element. There isy a spring H3 whichexerts a tension between pivot 25 and spring attachment member 45. Thisspring II3 tends to center the device from lateral or transversemovement. Since the forces exerted by the rollers on the cam surfaces I3under tension of this spring tend to bring the device into the positionshown in solid lines at the bottom of Fig. 2. This spring II3 alsoperforms the function of holding the piston 21 up in the cylinder I6when the device is not actually being used in lifting, and so in drivingthe vehicle after one lifting operation of several that are normallyrequired when parking, the compression element is automatically raisedfrom contact with the roadway,

as it is so adjusted that when not under presu sure from the piston 13,the foot 53 rides a little ways above the roadway in the loweredposition.

When it is desired to release the device, the operator presses upon apedal II 4 mounted on This pedal Il@ is provided with a bell crank leverIE6 which is pivoted at II'I. 'Ihe bell crank lever pushes downwardly onthe rod IDS and raises the valve 99 from its seat in the port 98, thuspermitting `the uid under pressure in the cylinder I6 to pass throughthe port 98` back into the interior 81 of the cylinder 16. This use ofthe pedal I It is all that is necessary after each use of the pump. Asthe device is left in the vertical position during the entire parkingmaneuvering operation, spring I I3 holds it out of Contact with theroadway as the vehicle is moved.

It is contemplated that this device may be mounted on the front axle ata point midway between the two steering wheels, or that it may bemounted off to one side ofthe middle point. The side mounting would bethe only one. adaptable for use on vehicles that have no front axle, themounting being at some convenient place on the structure, provided insuch vehicles, on which provision is made by the manufacturer forjacking up a front wheel. The difference between the central and sidepositions of mounting is that in the central position, certain movementsofthe compression element occur which are absent when the mounting is atthe side. The reason for this difference is that when the centralmounting is used, it is contemplated that there will not be enoughlifting length provided in the piston 21 to raise the wheels of thevehicle completely off the roadway, but only enough to relieve thewheels of a sufficient amount of theV weight of the vehicle to allowthem to be turned readily, 'leaving the wheels in contact with theroadway.

In the use of the side mounting, where only one wheel is relieved by thelifting device, provision may be made for either partially taking theweight olf that wheel, leaving it in Contact with the roadway, or theremay be provided sufcient lifting length in piston 21 to raise the Wheelitself free of the road. In turning the steering wheels, when themechanism for relieving weight on the wheels is in use, the device mayat times tend to assume the positions indi,- cated by the dotted linesin Fig. 2, which occur at the bottom of that gure.

This is due to the fact that in turning the steering wheels while theyare contacting. the roadway, even though there is no forward or backwardmotion of the vehicle, there isa virtual- `ly lateral movement impartedtoy that end of the vehicle to which they are attached, which in theconventional motor vehicle is the front end. The reason for this is thatthe front or steering wheels are mounted on the vehiclein such a manneras to provide for easy steering of the vehicle and long life for thetires, and the same mounting that accomplishes these objects causes thefront end of the vehicle to move sidewise when the steering wheels,provided they are contacting the roadway, are turned while the vehicleis at rest.

In the conventional motor vehicle the two steering wheels' are mountedon spindles which are mounted on the vehicle, usually one on each end ofthe iront axle, by means of king pins through spindle yokes. In some ofthe later models of motor cars, the iront axle as such, is done awaywith and there is provided a different construction for the front wheelmounting, but they too have the spindle for each wheel and the king pinfor attaching the spindle to the vehicle. It is in the method ofmounting the spindle, the king pin. and the spindle arm, that provisionis made for easy steering and long tire wear.

Caster, camber, king pin inclination, toe-in, and turning radius are thenames given to the different phases of steering wheel mounting, and theyare ali present in the conventional motor car, as each plays its part,and has its function to perform.

Caster is the name given to the rearward leaning of the king pin toproduce a trailing effect to the front wheels. The king pin is tiltedbackwards at the top by the method of mounting the axle to the irontlongitudinal car springs, and as` it is a straight pin, that means thatthe bottom end of it is pointing forward of the point on the roadwaywhere the center of the tire is` resting. Just as in the case of anykind of caster, there results the eifort of the wheels to run in astraight ahead position, due to their trailing position.

When the vehicle turns a corner, caster has the effect of tending tocause the wheels to come back to the straight ahead position. This isbecause the king pin, being tilted backward, and the wheel turning onthe king pin, there is a lift given to the axle at the point where theinside wheel is mounted and a drop or lowering given tothe axle at thepoint where the outside wheel is mounted. After the driver releases thewheels from the turning force which he has applied they will tend tostraighten out.

Lest it be confusing how this up and down motion is given to the twoends of the axle, perhaps it is Well to cite the fact that the insideWheel, on the turn, really moves backwards, that is, in relation to itspoint of mounting where the spindle yoke is fastened in by the king pin,and the outside wheel moves forward. Of course, the result is that theking pins being tilted backward, the two wheels move oppositely inrelation to the tilt of the king pins. The inside wheel on the turn willcause the portion of the Vehicle to which it is attached, usually theaxle, to rise, because as the wheel turns backward, the spindle, due tothe backward tilt of the king pin, tries to come closer to the ground.Of course, this is impossible as the wheel is around the spindle andwill not permit the spindle to get closer to the ground than the radiusof the wheel. However, when the spindle comes into the position causedby turning the wheel backwards, something must compensate for thisdropping eiect, and what happens is that the axle, to which the spindleis attached, rises.

So also, on the other end, the wheel that turns moves forward inrelation to the king pin, and due to the backward tilt of the king pin,the spindle, as it swings around, rises. Of course, the wheel cannotrise with the spindle as it must stay on the ground and carry the weightof the vehicle, so what happens is that the axle is drawn closer to theground at this point. The wheel cannot get closer or farther from theground as its position on the ground is always the same, but that is nottrue of the spindle, the angle of which, up and down from the end of theaxle, changes, and the axle, or other part of the vehicle to which it isattached, moves up and down in response to these changes.

Now it is apparent that even though the Vehicle be at rest, there willbe a sidewise motion imparted to the front end of the vehicle if thesteering wheels are turned, be-cause of the rearward tilt of thetopparts of the two king pins. As the two wheels turn, even though thevehicle is not moving either forward or backward, the front end of thevehicle shifts sidewise opposite to the direction in which the wheelsare turned, being impelled in that direction by the same forces whichcause the axle at the inside wheel to rise and at the outside wheel todrop, as described above.

Camber the name given to the angle that the steering wheels are inclinedoutward at the top. This is accomplished by the angle at which thespindle is mounted to the end of the axle, there being a sloping of thespindle, making the outer end of the spindle come closer to the groundthan the inner end. The purpose of this camber is to cause the point ofroad Contact of the tire to come under the center of the king pin.

The king pin is mounted in such a way that the top of the king pin isinclined in toward the longitudinal axis of the vehicle, and the bottomprojects outward along the line of the front axle. This is necessary inthe present day motor cars with their small wheels and big tires, if thecamber given to the wheels is to be practicable. Without it, there wouldhave to be such a great amount of camber in order to place the roadcontact portion of the tires under a king pin mounted perpendicularly,that the wheels would have so great an inclination outward at the topthat steering of the Vehicle on turns would be diincult, side strain onthe wheels themselves would be severe, and there would even be danger offorcing a tire off the rim of the wheel. Moe tions due to camber arecared for by this device.

Camber adjustment without toe-in provision would cause the tires to wearon the shoulders. Toe-in is the phrase used to describe the inwardinclination of the front portions of the wheels and it is obtained bymounting the spindles so that their outside, or free ends, are a littleforward of the axle. This takes the weight off the shoulders and puts itupon the center of the tires, and also produces a marked steadyingeifect upon the steering of the vehicle. Toe-in may cause certainmotions that must be absorbed by my device, and its construction permitssuch motions to be absorbed during operation.

There is provision made in the steering assemf bly of a motor Vehicle totake care of the different sized arcs on which the two front wheeistravel when the vehicle makes a turn. This is called the turning radius,and it is obtained by setting the spindle arms, which turn the spindlesthrough the spindle yoke around the king pin, obliquely from thesteering knuckle. In this way, the wheels must spread apart at the frontas they are turned, thus causing the outside wheel to run in a large arcand the inside wheel in a small arc. This construction also imposescertain motions on the front of the vehicle when cramping the wheels.

All of the above indicates the complex factors which affect this devicein operation. The various features of construction which it embodiesenable it to function smoothly and efficiently and to care for thevariables which occur in its use.

n Figs. 6 and I have shown an alternate form of the device whichcomprises a support 263 which is attached by means of U-bolts 25 to thefront axle 5. The support 209 is in eifect a cylinder head and isprovided with an aperture ?@2 which communicates with the exible tubing53. Screwed into the support 29) is a cylinder 203. Adapted to slide inthe cylinder 253 is a piston 2M having the usual piston head M5 which Ihave indicated generally. Another cylinder head 295 is screwed over thecylinder 203. The piston 204 is provided with a bifurcated end 2B? whichcarries a pivot 258 on which is pivoted a support piece 289.

The support piece 209 has a pivot 2H which passes through bifurcatedconstruction 2 i 2. The two pivots 2i l and 268 comprise a universaljoint. The compression element is attached to bifurcated structure 212and comprises two compression struts 2i3 set at an angle with a bracingmember 2 l l between them. To the bracing member 2l@ is attached Bowdenwire 58. Each of the compression struts ZIB carries a ball 2! 5, whichts within foot pieces 216.

l a spring support 2H.

There is provided on the support member On the `piston 204 is anotherspring support ZIB. The spring 21,9 Vhas its ends supported at 2H andZIB. Spring 2| 9 tends to compress the device into its collapsed orupper position. The tension of the spring 2I9 of course acts in additionto the weight of the vehicle which latter quickly forces piston 264towards its upper position until the feet Zl are ready to leave theroadway, when spring ZIS completes the upward movement of cylinder 204.

In the collapsed condition of the device, it may be raised to thehorizontal position on pivot 2i! as indicated in Fig. 7 in dotted lines.In operation, when feet 216 are on the ground, there may be transverseor lateral displacement of compression struts 2l3 atany time during theoperation, but such lateral or transverse displacement will not greatlychange the amount of lift which will be obtained per unit of relativemovement between the cylinder 203 and the piston M. "I his is apparentfrom an inspection of Fig. 6. The plurality of compression struts incombination with the feet members cause the members to givesubstantially uniform lift per unit of elongation (see dotted lines,Fig. 6, which show that this phenomenon occurs). In this form of .devicethere will be greater lift at points between the two positions shown ofthe lower or longitudinally swung Vcompression elements ZIE and 213, butthis greater lift will not be harmful in operation of the device.

This device will center itself vertically after each lifting operation,as spring 2id raises piston 2&4 so that foot .pieces 2id are clear ofthe ground, and the struts `2I3 will swing freely .on pivots 268 and 2Hto a vertical position.

While I have shown and described the preferred embodiment of myinvention, I wish it to be understood that I do not confine myself tothe precise details of construction `herein set forth, by way ofillustration, as it is apparent that many changes and variations may bemade therein, by those skilled in the art, Without departing from thespirit of the invention, or eX- ceeding the scope of the appendedclaims.

Even when only one of the steering Wheels is in contact with the ground,the various motions described herein at least in part occur.

I claim:-

1. In a steering accessory, a lift element, a foot therefor, means toelongate the lift element, and means adapted to give substantiallyuniform lift regardless of lateral displacement of the foot element.

2. In a steering accessory, a lift element, a foot member therefor,means to elongate the lift element, means adapted to give asubstantially uniform lift regardless of lateral displacement of thefoot element, and means permitting the lift element to be held out ofoperative position with its longitudinal axis substantially at rightangles to that of the vehicle 3. In a steering accessory, a liftelement, a foot member therefor, means to elongate the lift ele-- mentand cam means cooperating with the lift element to give a substantiallyuniform lift regardless of the lateral displacement of the foot element.

4. In a steering accessory a lift element, means supporting the liftelement for universal movement on the vehicle, a foot member therefor,means to elongate the lift element and means to give a substantiallyuniform lift regardless of lateral displacement of the foot element.

5. In a steering accessory, a lift element, means supporting the lift.element for universal movement on the vehicle, means resistingtransverse displacement of the lift element, a foot member for the liftelement, means to elongate the eleyment and means `adapted to give asubstantially uniform lift regardless of lateral displacement of thefoot element.

6. In `a steering accessory, a universally pivoted lift element, a footmember therefor, means to` .8. In a steering accessory, a lift element,av

foot member therefor, 4a piston formed thereon, a cylinder in which thepiston can reciprocate, a source of fluid `,under .pressure adapted tooperate the piston to elongate the ,element and means adapted to lgivesubstantially uniform lift for aV given piston movement, regardless ofthe lateral displacement Yof the foot member Within predeterminedlimits, anda release mechanism permitting the return of the piston toits initial position.

9. In a steering accessory, a lift element, a foot v.member therefor, apiston formed thereon, a cylinder in which the piston can reciprocate, asource of fluid under pressure adapted to operate the piston to elongatethe element, means permitting the element to be held out of operativeposition with its longitudinal axis substantially at right angles tothat of the vehicle and means adapted to `give substantially uniformlift for a given piston movement regardless of lateral displacement ofthe foot member within determined limits.

10. In a steering accessory, a lift element, a foot member therefor, apiston formed thereon, a cylinder in which the piston can reciprocate, asource of fluid under pressure adapted to operate the piston to elongatethe element, cam means cooperating with the element to givesubstantially uniform lift regardless of lateral displacement of thefoo-t element.

11. In a steering accessory, a lift element, means supporting the liftelement for universal movement on the vehicle, a foot member for theelement, a piston formed on the element, a cylinder in which the pistoncan reciprocate, a source of fluid under pressure adapted to operate thepiston, and means adapted to give substantially uniform lift regardlessof the lateral displacement of the foot member within determined limits.

12. In a steering accessory, a lift element, means supporting theelement for universal movement onthe vehicle, means tending to preventtransverse displacement thereof, a foot member therefor, a piston formedon the element, a cylinder in which the piston can reciprocate, and asource of fluid under pressure adapted to operate the piston to elongatethe element.

13, In a steering accessory, a lift element,

means supporting the element for universal movement on the vehicle,means tending to prevent transverse displacement thereof, a foot membertherefor, a piston formed on the element, a cylinder in which the pistoncan reciprocate, and a source of uid under pressure adapted to operatethe piston to elongate the element, and means adapted to give asubstantially uniform lift for a given piston movement regardless oflateral displacement of the foot member within determined limits.

14. In a steering accessory, a lift element, a foot member therefor, apiston formed thereon, a cylinder in Which the piston can reciprocate,means supporting the lift element for universal movement on the vehicle,means tending to prevent transverse displacement of the element, meanstending to prevent longitudinal displacement of the element, a source offluid under pressure adapted to operate the piston to elongate theelement, and means adapted to give a substantially uniform lift for agiven piston movement regardless of lateral displacement of the footmember within determined limits.

l5. In a steering accessory, a lift element, means permitting it to beheld out of operative position with its longitudinal axis substantiallyat right angles to that of the vehicle, a foot member therefor, a pistonformed thereon, a cylinder in which the piston can reciprocate, a sourceof fluid under pressure adapted to operate the piston to elongate theelement, means adapted to give a substantially uniform lift for a givenpiston movement regardless of lateral displacement of the foot memberWithin determined limits and a release mechanism permitting return ofthe piston to its initial position.

16. In a steering accessory, a lift element,

means supporting the lift element for universal movement on the vehicle,a foot member therefor, a piston formed thereon, a cylinder in which thepiston can reciprocate, a source of fluid under pressure adapted tooperate the piston to elongate the element, means adapted to give asubstantially uniform lift for a given piston movement regardless oflateral displacement of the foot member Within determined limits and arelease mechanism permitting return of the piston to its initialposition.

17. In a steering accessory, a lift element, means supporting the liftelement for universal movement on the vehicle, cam means cooperatingwith the element to give a substantially uniform lift regardless oflateral displacement of the element, a foot member therefor, a pistonformed thereon, a cylinder in Which the piston can reciprocate, and asource of fluid under pressure adapted to operate the piston to elongatethe` element.

18. In a steering accessory, a lift element adapted to be elongatedpresenting a relatively broad base, bracing means cooperating with thebase to present a lift element substantially the JOI-IN LESTER BARR.

a lift element.

